The Middle Temple, London

Legal history: The Middle Temple Gardens, London, has had lawyers rushing around its beautiful buildings for centuries.

Middle Temple is one of the four Inns of Court which have the exclusive right to Call men and women to the Bar, ie to admit those who have fulfilled the necessary qualifications to the degree of Barrister-at-Law, which entitles them, after a period of pupillage (vocational training) either to practise as independent advocates in the Courts of England and Wales or to take employment in government or local government service, industry, commerce or finance.-Middle Temple

Lots of dark woods and white plaster ceiling and portraits of important people. In short, another one of those wonderful places that takes you back in time to the London that was. The Middle Temple Hall was built during the reign of Elizabeth I, in 1576, as a dining and assembly hall. The Middle Temple Garden is a lovely spot as well, with all those windows and all that fine brickwork as a backdrop.

Being a bit of a bibliophile I was interest to find out that The Middle Temple has a Rare Book and Manuscript Collection with over 7000 early printed books, and approximately 200 Manuscripts. Access to the Collection is by appointment only, but if you are interested legal documents this is worth seeing. The regular library holds about 150,000 books of one sort or another, again mostly legal in nature.

Library Opening Times:

Monday to Thursday - 9.00 am to 8.00 pm
Friday - 9.00 am to 7.00 pm
Saturday - 10.00 am to 5.00 pm (every 4th Saturday)
Monday to Friday - 9.00 am to 5.30 pm
The Library also opens every fourth Saturday on a rota with the other Inn libraries from 10.00 am to 5.00 pm

As with most places in London these days there is a Virtual Tour of The Middle Temple which lets you see the site without the bother of actually going there.

Among the good things the Middle Temple does is help to provide for the next generation of London barristers by offering Scholarships and Prizes. Well, if there's one thing the world needs, it's more lawyers, right?

Middle Temple Lane

London

EC4Y 9AT

Open: 10am-11.30am and 3pm-4pm Mon-Fri

Slow Down London

Slow Down London is a new project to inspire Londoners to improve their lives by slowing down to do things well, rather than as fast as possible.

I love the idea of Slow Down London, take the time to look around and see the city. I've always been a fan of Mindfulness and taking a moment to see where I am. I don't always succeed, and I must admit that most of my time in London was spent looking through a camera lens, but then, I tend see most of the world through a camera lens. I also like Tai Chi and the idea of doing Tai Chi on a busy spot in London.

I've never been a very good slow tourist, I'm more one of those that loves hop on and hop off bus tours and getting in as much in a day as I can. But I have started to slow down in my own life and I really like all the articles and slide shows I find on Slow Down London.

I like this slide show of The Slow Exposure Competition, an easy way to fuel my London thoughts.

London's Blue Plaques

The blue plaques scheme has been running for over 140 years and is one of the oldest of its kind in the world. The idea of erecting ‘memorial tablets’ in London was first proposed by William Ewart MP in the House of Commons in 1863. It had an immediate impact on the public imagination, and in 1866 the Society of Arts (later Royal Society of Arts) founded an official plaques scheme for the capital. The Society erected its first plaque – to the poet Lord Byron – in 1867. In all, the Society of Arts erected 35 plaques; today, less than half of them survive, the earliest of which commemorates Napoleon III (1867).-English Heritage

Blue plaques seem to be everywhere in London, and with about 800 blue plaques floating around it's no wonder. The London Blue Plaques are sort of like The Hollywood Walk of Fame-except they are a tad more prestigious. There are a couple of books on London's Blue Plaques and there is a website where you can go and make your own Blue Plaque. There's also a pretty nice blog dedicated to the topic of Blue Plaques, called Blue Plaques of London. Like a lot of Blogger taking on a large topic he seems to have slowed down a bit.

There is also a nice little Blue Plaque Map of Central London where you can click on the shadows and pull up buildings that have Blue Plaques. Clearly a work in progress, but I like what they have done so far. This is a fun way to while away the odd moment. In real life the Blue Plaques are a little on the subtle side and it is easy enough to walk past them all without noticing them. That's when those handy people with umbrellas called Tour Guides come in handy, they point out the little Blue Plaques and tell you who they are for.

Blue plaques are placed on buildings - occasionally grand, often ordinary - where famous people lived and worked. Sigmund Freud lived and worked in fashionable Hampstead; Charles Darwin in central London’s university campus; Isaac Newton in Soho; Charles Dickens in private street of Camden; Mozart composed his first symphony in the elegant neighbourhood of Chelsea. As with all fame, of course, many of the Blue Plaques of London commemorate people the average person don't know. British Heritage has kindly composed a list of the many names and a brief bio for those interested.

So be sure to look up for a bit of blue once in a while in London, you might see a Blue Plaque telling you that someone important once lived there.

London Designers

London is one of the world's great fashion Meccas, and it is marked by it's creativity and eccentric flares. I am not much of a fashionista myself, but I do like to look at the new styles once in a while and see how far behind the time I really am.

All of these London Designers are fun and interesting and most are far beyond my meager means to afford. That doesn't mean that a bit of window shopping would not be worth while when in London, and who knows, maybe I could buy some tiny little thing and get a nice designer label shopping bag.

Burberry

The famous Burberry check may have become a chav favourite, but the high-end Prorsum range has retained its exclusivity. Christopher Bailey has won British Designer of the Year for his work on the label.

Cath Kidston

Cath Kidston Ltd was founded in 1993 when designer Cath Kidston opened a tiny shop in London’s Holland Park. She began by selling the vintage fabrics, wallpapers and brightly-painted junk furniture she remembered fondly from her childhood. Her clever, witty re-working of traditional English country house style meant that her shop soon became a cult success.

Jasper Conran

A bit of an institution these days, Jasper Conran offers beautifully classic garments as well as homewares, jewellery, scents and a more affordable range of designs for Debenhams. This label provides fantastic smart casual wear.

Joseph

Joseph's signature look is smart, tailored and modern. Shop here for beautifully made classic items that you just can't do without. The Fulham Road flagship store carries ranges of other top European designers as well.

Paul Smith

The king of British men's fashion is Sir Paul Smith and his label celebrates classic British tailoring injected with a twist. The trademark bright patterned shirts and loud cufflinks, wallets and accessories are instantly recognisable. Pop into Paul's for fun shopping and great men's gifts.

Pringle of Scotland

This traditional clothing label has worked hard in recent years to become one of Britain's hottest fashion brands. The Scottish company has shaken off its old golfers' image and Pringle now offers colourful and creative ranges of knitwear and cashmere.

Stella McCartney

Since leaving French fashion house Chloé, Stella McCartney has gone from strength to strength. She is now Britain's hottest celebrity designer and owner of one of the UK's most envied labels. Her high street range made exclusively for Hennes sold out across the country within hours of hitting shop rails. However for classic Stella chic and a more relaxed browsing experience, visit the Bruton Street flagship store.

Vivienne Westwood

Vivienne Westwood has been revolutionising the British fashion industry since the label's early days in the 1970s. She continues to lead the market with her bold designs today. Peruse the rails of her flagship store to take in her Red, Gold, Man and Anglomania labels.

The London Cabbie

In London, hackney-carriage drivers have to pass a test called The Knowledge to demonstrate they have an intimate knowledge of London streets. There are currently around 21,000 black cabs in London, licensed by the Public Carriage Office.

Taxi drivers given brain scans by scientists at University College London had a larger hippocampus compared with other people. This is a part of the brain associated with navigation in birds and animals. -BBC News

London Cabs are one of those icons of the city, famed for being used by the well to do, like Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. Well, maybe that was before London Cabbies had to learn The Knowledge.

I'm more of a Double Decker Bus kind of guy, but I do like the look of the London Black Taxis.

Fares are metered, and there is a minimum charge of £2.20. Black cabs are licensed to carry up to five people (six in the special Metrocabs and Mercedes Vitos) plus luggage. There are no additional charges for extra passengers or items of luggage within these limits. There is a £2 charge when you take a black cab from Heathrow Airport and also a £2 charge when you book a black cab by telephone.

London Taxis - Useful Information

• Call the Taxi One Number to book a licensed taxi, no account needed - passengers simply pay with cash or by credit or debit card : +44 (0)871 871 8710
• Be Cabwise, text HOME to 60835 (60TFL) and get black cab and minicab numbers sent straight to your mobile. There is a charge of 35p plus your network charge for this service, if you are on 3 or an overseas network you will need to text your location (street name and partial postcode e.g. Victoria St SW1) to +44 07797 800 000
• Findaride – find details of licensed private hire and minicab operators in any part of London - http://tfl.gov.uk/findaride
• To comment or complain about taxi and private hire services email coms@pco.org.uk visit www.tfl.gov.uk/contactcabs or call TfL on 0845 300 7000
• London Travel Information (24 hrs): +44 (0)20 7222 1234
• Lost property. If you have lost something in a black cab then call 0845 330 9882 or visit http://tfl.gov.uk/lpo. If you lose something in a private hire vehicle or minicab then contact the operator you made the booking with.

London's Theatreland

West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's "Theatreland". Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking world. Seeing a West End show is a common tourist activity in London.

Programmes such as How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? and Any Dream Will Do boosted attendances across theatreland.

The Society of London Theatre questioned 716 people about the influence of TV talent programmes on the productions they were likely to see.

Nearly half said the shows made them more likely to see the musical involved. Reality programmes landed Lee Mead, Connie Fisher and Jodie Prenger lead roles in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Sound Of Music and Oliver!

The Ipsos Mori poll also found that after watching the TV shows, a third of people were more likely to attend any musical - not just the one they saw on television; and nearly a quarter would consider a play or comedy as well.

The talent shows were broadcast between 2006 and last year. They coincided with record years for theatre audiences, which rose from 12.35 million three years ago to 13.6 million in 2007 and 13.89 million last year.

Book London theatre tickets - exclusive half-price and discount tickets from Official Agents Book London Theatre Tickets now!

Planning on taking in a Show while your in London? You might want to check out Society Of London Theatre Google Maps which has the seemingly endless places to watch a show mapped out for you.

The Battle Over London Tipping

I've always found tipping to be an odd business. The Wife tends to tip everyone 15 percent, no matter what. A couple of friends tip everyone a dollar, no matter what. Some people just hate the idea of tipping and don't do it at all on general principals. I have always been against forced tipping, which is standard practice at very expensive restaurants where they are charging far too much for food anyway. But then, this is usually only done with large groups.

In London tipping it a bit different-tipping has often been covered with a service charge.

Diners at Le Pont de la Tour, Quaglino's and 18 other restaurants established by the designer Terence Conran will be presented with a bill making clear that a service charge is not included and leaving a blank space for any tips.

The move to discretionary tipping – cash that would be shared by the staff – represents the latest attempt by restaurateurs to win back diners who have deserted them in the recession. Top London restaurants have already slashed mark-ups on fine wines and hundreds of establishments are offering "two-for-one" meals or 50% off.

D&D London, which co-owns the chain with Conran Holdings, has good reason to act. It saw its profits fall by a fifth last year to £6.5m.

I like tipping, as it is one of the few chances I have in life to be a big shot and show some generosity of spirit at the same time. But I know that not everyone tips well, and I have never been a huge tipper myself. My brother always likes to do a bit of math and say there X number of people here and if we all tip Y than that's a good day's wages.

There is something to that kind of logic. Surely no restaurant would voluntarily pay their waitstaff what they make in tips on a good night? There are so many flavors of restaurants out there that it is impossible to make a definitive answer as to what a good tip should be.

I have always been in favor of the idea of a living wage-plus tips. That way there will still be some incentive to give good service, but the waitstaff doesn't miss a car payment if they have a bad week. It seems that 15% is the standard in the US, but people unused to voluntary tipping in London might lowball that number and tip more along the lines of 8%.

A standard argument against any plans to change the tipping system, as no one likes any kind of change whatsoever, is that if they don't like the system as it is-they can go get a job doing something else. Or at the very least, try to get a job at a better restaurant where the tips would be substantially better on expensive meals than on cheap meals. Or so I might assume, as I say, I don't really know.

Times are hard all over, maybe doing away with tipping altogether would be a good idea.

Read more about Tipping in The London Evening Standard. For a few London thoughts against tipping, see Citywire.